How I Mined Cryptocurrency

4 min readMay 14, 2021

Mining cryptocurrency is a brutal business. At least for an average guy with a laptop, even a good one — I’ve tried it myself, and this is how it went.

Written by Cat Alien, May 14, 2021

What is Cryptocurrency Mining

Cryptocurrency mining is servicing blockchain infrastructure and transactions with computer processing power, and getting paid in cryptocurrency for doing it. Computers on a blockchain are doing complex computations to process transactions, as well as move and store data, which requires powerful hardware and vast amounts of energy. Crypto mining is done in a decentralized manner by a large variety of people and organizations all over the world.

Is Cryptocurrency Mining Profitable

Is cryptocurrency mining profitable? Well, it must be profitable if people are doing it, right? But this question of profitability is not a straight one, because, in reality, it is not always profitable. What’s a better way to find that out than to give cryptocurrency mining a try.

People who mine cryptocurrency do it because they find even this low margin profitable, or they must be crypto enthusiasts.

To begin mining all you need is to install free software downloadable from the Internet, set up a crypto wallet, and configure your mining preferences. The whole process is not without some degree of struggle and confusion, but it’s manageable. I’ve used a powerful GeForce GTX 1660 Ti with 16GB RAM to mine for LITECOIN and after a two-hour mining session at 100% CPU load, and my computer heating up to 90 °F, the earnings were 0.000002280669 LTC or $0.00077. I’m sure this would not even cover the cost of electricity, let alone my time and the hardware expenses. And it’s not even the hardest crypto to mine for, Bitcoin is a lot harder, time and energy-wise.

The two hours I’ve spent mining for crypto were somewhat nerve-wracking. As I sat through the whole process observing it and hoping to avoid the system overheating I felt slightly worried and sorry for my laptop, a bit guilty knowing I’m adding to a sizable carbon footprint all while obviously abusing my computer. My electricity bill and my adrenaline were running high. After it was all over I felt drained and hungover from the whole experience, while at the same time a part of me felt awesome for having participated in this amazing new thing. It gave me a new perspective and appreciation for the people who do cryptocurrency mining, and the work they do — their humble toiling behind the scenes is what makes it all happen. Also, looking closely at the inner workings of crypto mining clearly highlights one of the biggest problems with it — energy inefficiency.

How Cryptocurrency Mining Works

So how does it work then, who is mining cryptocurrency, and how do crypto miners make money? My guess, people who mine cryptocurrency do it because they find even this low margin profitable, or they must be crypto enthusiasts. That’s why so much crypto mining is mostly happening in poorly developed parts of the world where the cost of living is just a few dollars a day. Can you picture a guy, somewhere in the plains of Mongolia, or a jungle in Southeast Asia, or most likely China’s remote mountains… in fact, China, Iceland, Canada, the US, Russia, Venezuela are the leading countries mining cryptocurrency, with China accounting for about 65% of all crypto mining.

Having tried mining crypto gave me a new perspective and appreciation for the people who do cryptocurrency mining, and the work they do — their humble toiling behind the scenes is what makes it all happen.

Small mining entities operate in pools, because mining cryptocurrency solo may take months to see any income, while using inexpensive hardware may take forever to see any results at all. In developed countries, crypto miners rely on huge warehouses filled with computers all mining crypto. With the margins so low they must squeeze every little penny from their CPUs. It literally is a trickle that gets collected into streams and is accumulated. Nonetheless, collectively crypto miners generate billions in revenue, and with the cryptocurrency market thriving right now their share of success is growing as well.

The conclusion is that cryptocurrency mining is a tricky business with a lot of variables, but it could be rewarding. Investing in cryptocurrency may be more appealing for an average person.

Have questions, comments, or need help with starting with cryptocurrency mining? Let me know: mail@imagekandi.com

Yours Truly,

Cat Alien